stevewonderful
Member
- Joined
- May 11, 2010
- Messages
- 56
- Reaction score
- 21
I finally finished the upgrades to the SD40VE I traded for.
I used Mothers Mag polish and my dremel polishing wheel to buff the feed ramp to a mirror shine.
I put on some grips from tractiongrips.com for $8.99 delivered and really like them.
I installed the spring kit from Apex tactical and that thing is magic.
Also added night sights from XS Big Dots from E-Bay for $85.00.
Luv em! Only took about 20 mins to install. Everything you need is in the kit including lock-tite and a polymer drift punch.
I liked the Apex Spring Kit so much that I ordered their SD trigger from Brownell's instead of Apex because they were much closer. That's when I ran into trouble.
My model was made August 2013. After installing the trigger the pistol would not dry fire. I almost couldn't get the slide back off. Somehow I managed it. (I spoke with Scott over at Apex afterwards and he explained if that happens you can remove the end plate, take out the striker and then the slide comes off easy.)
Great customer service from them I might add. Scott even offered to install it for me if I mailed my gun to him. I didn't want to wait and be without.
There is a link on their website to a forum post that explains how to "LIGHTLY" file the back of the trigger to make it work. (http://bit.ly/1a3rKH9) Apparently this is necessary on some models due to some variations in manufacturing.
I also had serious trouble getting my trigger pivot pin in and out. Sometimes it took 30 minutes to get it out. I followed the video from Apex's website but had to push the pivot pin from the opposite direction as outlined in the video to remove it. I also looked at the video at Galloway Precision. They used a brass punch just to knock it out. I tried that and mine wouldn't budge and I was afraid I was going to damage my gun. So I stuck with the Apex method. Scott from Apex said some are easy to remove and some are not. Apparently it varies quite a bit.
I did a partial assembly with a slave pin after filing the trigger. I did not put the slide back on because I was worried it would get stuck again. I incorrectly assumed the sear would drop after pulling the trigger to check for proper operation after sanding the trigger. When it wouldn't, I kept sanding. Come to find out, it won't until re-assembled.
Also the blade safety on the trigger was catching on the frame ever so slightly when pulled. It was then that I made the call to Apex.
They were very helpful but by then I had had enough. I decided to stick with the factory trigger and the Apex Spring kit only. I prefer the way the factory trigger feels over the Apex trigger anyway.
Brownell's has a no questions asked return policy so I'm sending the Apex Trigger back. Apparently most people don't have the kind of problems with the Apex trigger that I did.
All in all, I'm very happy with the way the gun turned out and learned much about it through this process. The only other mod I'm considering is the Galloway Precision 22lb stainless steel recoil spring. Now I need to get to the range this weekend and put some rounds through it. Can't wait.
Here's some useful pictures and links for those that are interested:
SD40VE Slideshow by stevewonderful | Photobucket
https://apextactical.com/store/product-list.php?pg1-cid19.html
Store Page: Buy Here
I used Mothers Mag polish and my dremel polishing wheel to buff the feed ramp to a mirror shine.
I put on some grips from tractiongrips.com for $8.99 delivered and really like them.
I installed the spring kit from Apex tactical and that thing is magic.
Also added night sights from XS Big Dots from E-Bay for $85.00.
Luv em! Only took about 20 mins to install. Everything you need is in the kit including lock-tite and a polymer drift punch.
I liked the Apex Spring Kit so much that I ordered their SD trigger from Brownell's instead of Apex because they were much closer. That's when I ran into trouble.
My model was made August 2013. After installing the trigger the pistol would not dry fire. I almost couldn't get the slide back off. Somehow I managed it. (I spoke with Scott over at Apex afterwards and he explained if that happens you can remove the end plate, take out the striker and then the slide comes off easy.)
Great customer service from them I might add. Scott even offered to install it for me if I mailed my gun to him. I didn't want to wait and be without.
There is a link on their website to a forum post that explains how to "LIGHTLY" file the back of the trigger to make it work. (http://bit.ly/1a3rKH9) Apparently this is necessary on some models due to some variations in manufacturing.
I also had serious trouble getting my trigger pivot pin in and out. Sometimes it took 30 minutes to get it out. I followed the video from Apex's website but had to push the pivot pin from the opposite direction as outlined in the video to remove it. I also looked at the video at Galloway Precision. They used a brass punch just to knock it out. I tried that and mine wouldn't budge and I was afraid I was going to damage my gun. So I stuck with the Apex method. Scott from Apex said some are easy to remove and some are not. Apparently it varies quite a bit.
I did a partial assembly with a slave pin after filing the trigger. I did not put the slide back on because I was worried it would get stuck again. I incorrectly assumed the sear would drop after pulling the trigger to check for proper operation after sanding the trigger. When it wouldn't, I kept sanding. Come to find out, it won't until re-assembled.
Also the blade safety on the trigger was catching on the frame ever so slightly when pulled. It was then that I made the call to Apex.
They were very helpful but by then I had had enough. I decided to stick with the factory trigger and the Apex Spring kit only. I prefer the way the factory trigger feels over the Apex trigger anyway.
Brownell's has a no questions asked return policy so I'm sending the Apex Trigger back. Apparently most people don't have the kind of problems with the Apex trigger that I did.
All in all, I'm very happy with the way the gun turned out and learned much about it through this process. The only other mod I'm considering is the Galloway Precision 22lb stainless steel recoil spring. Now I need to get to the range this weekend and put some rounds through it. Can't wait.
Here's some useful pictures and links for those that are interested:
SD40VE Slideshow by stevewonderful | Photobucket
https://apextactical.com/store/product-list.php?pg1-cid19.html
Store Page: Buy Here
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